Heart of the Broken One
by Ilira
Summary: Naruto/IY: The Jewel is complete, the battle fought and Kagome is the only survivor. As the Jewel's guardian, she is forced to follow Naraku into the mysterious world of Naruto and vows to get revenge. But vengeance has always been a tricky thing.
1. Fracture

So.

This morning, at 4 a.m. I was looking at this. And then I read _**Kage Hasu**_and_**grimmich's**_ reviews. And then I started typing.

I made a lot of changes.

And I mean A LOT

Feel free to ask me for an explanation in case you get confused.

And….You guys are the most wonderful, patient people ever…I love you all

Enjoy – R&R

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Heart of the Broken One

Chapter 1: Fracture

"Mistress."

An eye twitch.

"Kagome-sama."

A slight shake of her shoulders.

"Lady Kagome."

A single tear rolled down a pale porcelain cheek.

"Kagome."

An invisible dam burst and suddenly she was sobbing, dropping the Tensaiga and crumpling to the floor, face buried in Yami's sleek black neck.

"Why won't it work Yami? Why?"

Her voice came out in big, sharp bursts as she gulped air helplessly, body shaking from the force of the sobs and for the first time in his life the shadow leopard was at a loss for words as his lady's pain enveloped him.

The sobs had subsided and now she was crying silent tears and attempting to breathe normally although her face crumpled once again from the effort and the shaking gulps came back full force.

Time passed by slowly, painfully as Yami waited for Kagome's tears to dry.

Finally she pulled away from him, face pale, the back to back blue crescents on her forehead standing out even more so than usual, eyes tinged pink, braid falling apart, yet still looking ever the picture of tragic beauty.

She sniffed once or twice more before standing and steadying herself against Yami, who watched her with worried eyes.

"It's _all _his fault." Her voice was a slight whisper, whipped away in the light breeze, yet Yami heard.

"InuYasha…"

The name fell from her lips almost reluctantly and instantly, the memories flooded back.

**Flashback:**

_The battle was here. Kagura and Kanna had turned against Naraku, thus getting them killed instantly. Sango and Miroku had died by the hands of Kikyo, joining hands at the last second of their lives and whispered their love. Jaken was hiding with Ah-Un and the children_

_Asago was being held by Kohaku since Kanna was dead. Hakudoshi was somewhere around here… Sesshomaru was currently battling the dead clay pot of a bitch. InuYasha… Kagome wasn't sure where he was, but Kohaku was still possessed._

_Kagome and Sesshomaru stood back to back, brother and sister, the final fighters._

_Kagome's battle kimono was ripped all over. Harsh tears created by the claws of her love, of her best friend ran down her slender back, the mark of a betrayal so potent Kagome still didn't believe it, although she had seen InuYasha with her own eyes, turning to the other side._

_Her bare legs were gushing blood at a rate that would have killed any normal human instantly. Thankfully, Kagome was not normal. A scar reached from the edge of her left eyebrow to rest on her high cheekbone, maybe the only permanent mark on her body._

_But there was no time to dwell on the injuries now. She was numb, numb all over._

_Turning, whirling, blocking, jabbing with all her might, eyes blank and unseeing, only her body feeling its way around the danger. She didn't notice the bubble of pink energy surrounding her slim frame._

_The bubble was the only barrier between her and the two hanyous who seemed intent on finishing her. InuYasha and Naraku, united, a sight Kagome had never even entertained the idea of. Perhaps she had been naïve; she should have seen this coming._

_Hadn't InuYasha been sneaking off more and more these past few months? Shouldn't she, as his so self-proclaimed "love" have noticed anything? Or had she been too wrapped up in the deceit of false proclamations of his love, the stories she had known weren't true, that everyone warned her about? She had been blinded._

_And she had allowed herself to be dragged into his web of lies._

_But this was most definitely not the time or the place to be cursing her own stupidity. There were two half-demons barely a foot from her and… oh god._

_The barrier dropped._

_Before Naraku or InuYasha had a chance to seize the opportunity, Kagome had drawn her power around her before blowing it outwards, knocking both half-demons onto the ground as the miko energy traveled outwards from Kagome's body in steadily weakening waves._

_Again she drew the pink glow around her like a shawl and-_

"_MAMA!"_

_Kagome's heart stopped beating._

_In an instant, blind rage had overwhelmed caution and she whirled around. Why? Why did Rin leave the shelter of the forest? No! No, Shippo. Not you too. No Shippo. Quickly Shippo, grab Rin and run back, back, back to safety, back, away from this place, no, leave. Please no._

_And why was this happening to her, why did everything happen to her? Why were her children doing this? No Rin, turn around, now._

_Rin stop, Rin please stop running. Mama's coming Rin, Mama's coming, stop moving Rin, please, please stop!_

_And why couldn't she say anything, why did she feel so numb?_

"_NO!"_

_The scream carried over the battlefield, turning the heads of the only survivors, Hachi, Yami, Sesshomaru, Shippo, Rin…_

_No._

_No._

_No._

_Rin wasn't a survivor anymore. Hakudoshi stood over her, dagger in hand, eyes expressionless. And the next second, Hakudoshi was dead too. Yami had appeared from nowhere and with a deft slice of his claw, Hakudoshi's head landed neatly on the ground next to his crumpled body._

"_Rin."_

_No._

_No._

_No,_

_Sesshomaru's whisper had barely grazed Kagome's ears before suddenly InuYasha was upon him and he was drawing the Tetusaiga and Sesshomaru's eyes locked with Kagome's and that one gaze told her he loved her, that she would have to finish this._

_But no. No, this was all happening too fast, how could this be happening?_

_They were about to win but now her brother was crumpling to the ground, Tojikin falling from his pale, perfect hands._

_No._

_No._

_No._

_And now only Kohaku and InuYasha and Kikyo and Naraku, Naraku the one who started this massacre were the only ones standing. And no! No… why did Naraku yank Shippo to him? What was happening? What were they doing with her son?_

_Why was her vision blurry? No. Yami. No Yami, don't!_

_And suddenly Yami was being thrown off InuYasha's back and he was lying motionless and oh, Kami was he dead?_

_No._

_No._

_No._

_And suddenly Kagome was crumpling to the ground and the numbness was gone and the pain was there, and a hundred daggers stabbed her repeatedly, her body was not moving and why was her vision so blurry?_

_And then she looked down and the arrow imbedded in her stomach was glowing black and her heart wasn't breaking because she just couldn't feel anything at all. And Naraku was approaching and she looked at Shippo and said a prayer because of course she was going to die now, it was inevitable, it had to happen._

_So she whispered a spell and blew a breath towards her son's frightened, pale face and suddenly Hachi was unconscious and slung over InuYasha's broad shoulder and he was smirking down at her and Kikyo looked like she wanted to finish this once and for all and suddenly a bright red shield has sprung up around her and where is this protection coming from?_

_And her finger is burning and she looks down and sees the engraved ring that__**he**__gave her before leaving and suddenly she knows Shippo is going to go where__**he**__is and nothing can harm Shippo so long as she is alive and__**he**__is alive and suddenly Kikyo is drawing back, hand burning black and falling off._

_No._

_No._

_No._

_And Kagome wants to laugh but the thought of moving jabs little needles into her and a thousand gunshots are going off in her brain and suddenly Kohaku's eyes widen and she knows that he is awake, if only for a precious minute and he stares down at her in horror._

_And Shippo is trying to move forward but Naraku has slapped him and how can he dare to hurt a child? And she stares at her son and tells him silently, no._

_Kagome will force herself to live and she will find her son and Shippo knows now and his face is so much older than it should be but she can't do anything now because suddenly, Naraku and everyone have vanished, a flash of light has enveloped the clearing and Kagome is alone and everyone is dead and she is fainting._

_And Naraku said something before he vanished but Kagome does not have the energy to remember it and now she is sure she is gone._

_And how?_

_How is this fair?_

_No._

_No._

_No._

**End Flashback:**

Kagome shuddered and Yami's tail curled around her legs comfortingly as she attempted to stay upright.

"They're gone. Aren't they, Yami?"

Kagome's voice held a note of wonderment in it, as though she hadn't noticed the bodies strewn about. A hint of childish stubbornness lingered in her face, as though she hoped Yami would deny it.

And while Yami hated denying Kagome anything and as much as he didn't want to be the one who took away that last bit of childishness, his lady needed to heal. And it would be impossible for her to heal if she continued clinging to the dead.

"Yes Kagome-sama."

"And they're not coming back, right? The Tensaiga won't work?"

"No, Kagome-sama."

His voice was gentle, resembling Miroku's so much that Kagome had to blink back tears as her worst nightmare was confirmed.

"Well then," she said briskly, "we should best get on with this."

Yami didn't ask what she meant, simply bobbed his head in agreement and rubbed his head against her stomach affectionately. Kagome smiled down at him, a grim, broken grimace and touched the back to back crescents on his jet-colored forehead before touching her matching insignia.

"I'm glad you're still here." She whispered, a hint of vulnerability showing through her tone.

Again Yami nodded in agreement and trotted towards the limp body of Sango, before seizing her arm brace gently in his mouth and dragging her towards the nearby river as Kagome cradled Rin into her arms and followed.

Ignoring her own injuries, Kagome placed both Rin and Sango in the shallowest part of the river and called the water around her, gently using it to wash away the dirt, the grime and the dried blood from their bodies with simple flicks of her hands, guiding the water around their bodies.

With a wide swishing motion, Kagome swept the water one final time over Sango's armored body and dragged her to shore to dry. She did the same procedure with Rin, gently closing the child's wide, glassy eyes with nary a tear.

The same steps were repeated for all of her friends and then she stood back and stared at the neat row of bodies. It was cruel and twisted, but she needed to see them all together, to be sure that there was nothing she could do.

Sesshomaru, Rin, Sango, Miroku, Kagura, Kanna.

She whispered their names softly, touching a hand to her lips and then the person's forehead in a symbol of immense respect and well-wishing for the dead.

Yami approached, a tiny leopard smirk playing around his mouth and Kagome stared at him, confused.

"What?"

"It seems all those craters from 'sitting' InuYasha are useful for something."

He said, the smirk fading.

Kagome frowned. "About that. Yami, why didn't it work? He went down but he jumped back so easily…"

When the shadow leopard shrugged fluidly, she dropped the issue and turned to Sango's body.

Now clothed in her favorite pink kimono, she looked like she was resting in a peaceful sleep and Kagome had to stifle a sob.

Reaching forward, Kagome unhooked the chain from Sango's wrist that held her shrunken Hiraikotsu, a result of a charm Kaede had taught Kagome long ago and clipped it around her own wrist.

With Yami's help, Kagome hefted Sango into a small crater and kissed her forehead before jumping out and sweeping dirt over her body. She did the same with Rin, Miroku, Kagura and Kanna, pausing briefly to consider taking Kanna's mirror but dismissing the idea as she remembered the feeling of her soul being sucked out of her body.

She does not need the flying feathers; however, she does take Kagura's fans, because she needs every kind of help now.

Now Sesshomaru. She turned back to her brother and swallowed thickly. Moving quickly and refusing to look into her brother's perfect, beautiful face, she gathered Tensaiga and Tojikin and set them to the side.

Touching her hand to the choker he had given her more than a year ago, the one that symbolized her Lady of the Western Lands, she fingered the blue ribbon and the silver plate engraved with the insignia of the Western Lands and remembered what he had requested for death.

"Cremation."

She and Yami said it at the same time but neither looked at the other as Kagome drew her black fire-rat cloak closer to her slim, bruised body.

Kagome reached into the enchanted bag Shippo had given her for her birthday, the first charm he had cast to expand things. It could hold infinite things and thankfully would not get heavier.

She drew out the lighter she had stored for emergencies and moved to the head of Sesshomaru's body, ignoring the pit-patter of feet as Jaken approaches with Ah-Un behind him to watch the ceremony.

Kagome kissed her brother's forehead and each of his hands before drawing his pelt over his tall, strong, _dead _body and slowly, slowly lighting it on fire.

She backed away and watched the fire spread quickly, fist clasped to her chest respectfully. And then it's over but she can't look and she hears Jaken moving forward and scooping the ash into a marble container to take back to the palace, where a shrine will be built for Sesshomaru and where his subjects will gather with gifts for gods and to honor the prince's memory.

"Here. Jaken, take the Tensaiga."

She does not offer the Tojikin and he does not request it, instead strapping the jar and the sword to Ah-Un and turning to Kagome, a solemn expression on his creased, toady face.

"We will wait."

"I may not come."

"We know."

And then Jaken is leaving and Kagome shrinks Tojikin and clasps it into Sango's bracelet along with her bow and arrows and the Hiraikotsu and says a final, silent goodbye to her brother.

And Kagome stands over the graves and faces the West and swears,

"I'll kill him. For all of you. I can do this, I will find Naraku and I will kill him. That's a promise."

She began the walk back to Kaede's hut, Yami walking next to her.

Kaede leaves the hut and upon seeing the defeated look in Kagome's eyes, pulls her apprentice into a hug. Kagome's face is expressionless and Kaede knows she is gone now.

The vulnerability and innocence was gone with the first swipe of a sword and now a different person stands in front of her, a girl who grew up too fast and became a woman too soon.

And then Kaede starts, because she has forgotten something and she looks at Kagome carefully, before saying, "There's something for you here."

And Kagome tilts her head in confusion and Kaede disappears into the hut, emerging with a squirming, fiery colored kitsune pup in her arms.

Instantly, the kitsune leaps out of her arms and onto Kagome's head, latching onto her braid with his claws as Kagome yelps and whirls, shaking her head wildly to remove the pup.

Yami sweatdrops and in one smooth motion has disentangled the kit and Kagome's braid, releasing the long locks. The black waves dance above her waist, the silvery-blue sheen of them standing out more than usual as she peers down at the kitsune.

He stares back, head cocked to the side before opening his mouth and making Kagome stumble back in shock.

"Hi!"

"Uh… I…I… Hi?"

Instantly, the kitsune's face splits into a huge grin and he jumps onto Kagome's foot, clawing his way up her cloak until he is resting on her shoulder, little tiny body delicately balanced on her slim shoulder.

"So…you're Kagome. Did you know that Sesshy is a big fat meanie? I just called him Fluffy, you know, cause of that thingy he has and then he gets all scary looking and starts going, 'thou shall not insult this Sesshomaru' or some crap like that. But I like you. You look nice."

He inhaled deeply.

"You smell nice too. Sort of fruity. You know, tasty smelling. And your hair is really silky. You know, hard to hang on to. Real strong. Sorry if I hurt ya."

Another deep inhale.

"Say, I'm really sorry about what happened. Fluffy was a meanie but he gave me some really good food and this tattoo thing on my forehead while droning about the moon. Sorry to see him go. Say, do you got some food? Cause I was waiting really long for you to get here."

Kagome gaped, shocked into silence, until the kit accidentally clawed her in the neck, at which point she regained her senses and asked, choking on her own breath.

"Um. What's your name?"

The kit straightened up on her shoulder proudly, body tipping precariously.

"They call me Youko! Cause you know, th-"

Yami cut him off.

"Yes. We know."

"Say, what's your name? Blackie?"

An indignant sniff.

"Yami."

"Oh… Yaaaamiiii. I s- EEEE!"

And Youko tumbled down Kagome's shoulder, into the waiting hands of the miko.

"Yami. That wasn't nice."

"Terribly sorry Kagome-sama. My paw slipped."

Youko righted himself, stretching up into all his 4 inch height glory.

"Your paw slipped? Oh sure Blackie, I see you. This is a conspiracy, ain't it? Fluffy warned me 'bout this stuff."

"A conspiracy? Against you? Like you'd be important enough."

"What? You! Augh- you just wait till I get down there."

"Waiting…waiting…"

"Aaaagh!"

And so began a wonderful friendship

Kagome set Youko onto the ground and immediately, the kitsune pounced on Yami, who batted him away with a yawn. Kagome almost smiled, remembering InuYasha and Shippo. Suddenly swarmed with the urge to leave, to leave this place and cleanse herself to the best of her ability, Kagome turned away from the upsetting scene in front of her.

She walked to the hot springs, telling Kaede over her shoulder. Once there, she soaked herself in the water and scrubbed intently at her hair and blood-soaked body. Finishing her bath, she studied her reflection in the water.

There was a scar stretching from cheekbone to the edge of her eyebrow, the only physical evidence of the battle that had occurred only a few hours ago. Two deep blue crescents stood back to back on her forehead. Luckily, they were easily hidden. On the nape of her neck, the kanji for "moon-daughter" was imprinted.

She sighed and traced the scar on the left side of her face hesitantly, before splashing out of the water and pulling on clothes.

She fastened Shippo's enchanted bag to her slim hip and shoved Kagura's fans into the strap of the bag. She put on the Shikon chain, tucking it under her shirt. Sesshomaru's choker was still on her neck.

Kagome pulled her hair into a messy bun and turned to head back to Kaede's, a memory long held off enveloping her.

**Flashback:**

"_Alright, just cut right there." Sesshomaru said, pointing to her palm. Kagome nodded. Taking the silver dagger, she cut a large gash into it. Sesshomaru and she both hastily emptied their blood into the goblets and drank deeply. The changes were immediate._

_Sesshomaru's eyes flecked blue and a new crescent moon appeared back to back with his old one._

_It was Kagome however, who was going through the most change._

_Her 5'2 frame lengthened to 5'4 and she filled out some more. __Her eyes flecked gold, the new insignia of the West appeared on her forehead and a kanji appeared near the nape of her neck._

"_Impossible…" Sesshomaru whispered eyes wide as he stared at his new Imouto. Kagome blinked._

"_Sesshy, I don't look demony-ish."_

"_That's because you're not a demon." His hand reached out to touch her neck. "You are a daughter of the moon."_

"_What does that mean?"_

"_I don't know. The legends are few and vague. But I suppose that since the Shikon needs you to be pure, it turned you into a pure being instead of letting you become a demon. It's quite an interesting concept."_

_His voice was thoughtful and Kagome shrugged. They had time to deal with this later. For now, it was dinner-time and Sessho-Aniki had had the chef make oden._

**End Flashback**

She smiled slightly, remembering the happiness of that day. Her smile soon faded remembering she would never see her brother again. She shuddered. Now was not the time to think about that. What the hell was going to happen now?

She reached Kaede's hut and was amused to find Youko hiding in a crevice far too small for Yami to reach and the shadow leopard was attempting to claw at the kitsune.

Spying Kagome, Youko let out a yell of triumph and raced towards her, neatly landing on her arm, where her folded fire-rat cloak rested.

Yami scowled and approached Kagome, rubbing her stomach with his head affectionately.

And just as she was about to laugh, sudden, sharp pain enveloped her and the Shikon glowed a blinding white, the daggers of pain piercing through her punctuated with the appearance of the glow.

A low keening scream emerged from her mouth and suddenly Kaede was running out of the hut and her eyes were widening and she was shouting something but Kagome didn't notice because the pain was pressing in from all sides and the light was piercing her eyes and with another scream, Kagome disappeared.

_fin_

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A/N:

Hola

Thanks to all of you **amazing reviewers** out there! I love you all!

And now I have been awake for more than 22 hours. So I am going to bed.

**Review with favorite quotes and any suggestions ;)**

**Tell me about any typos.**

-Ilira


	2. Transition

A/N:

Thank you to all these reviewers:

**Celeste Criss, Kayla, Elfgurl96, SesshomaruLover4eva, dragfire58, missymoo11, toolazy, sesshykaggy, HieiLuvr, and ChaoticEnergy**

I hope you review again ;)

* * *

Heart of the Broken One

Chapter 2: Transition

White. It was all white. Her eyes were not even open yet but it was all white. Blank and clean and fresh and new. An empty slate. A new beginning.

And suddenly she knew she was leaving.

A sudden weight on her stomach forced her eyes open quickly –eyes darting around, noticing a vague dent in the spherical cavern- as she jumped to her feet, tiny silver dagger -usually hidden in her boot- in hand. Youko fell to the floor with an earth jilting crash. Yami snickered behind his paw as the kitsune attempted to stand up and fell to the ground again, large eyes hazy.

"Kagome-sama!" Youko whined.

Kagome blinked down at his tiny frame and shook her head, muttering something about crazed kits and lack of etiquette.

"I'm terribly sorry Youko. You should know better than to jump on a seemingly unconscious person."

Youko hung his head. "Sorry, Kagome-sama." He whispered, looking up at her with wide eyes.

Kagome's heart softened. "It's ok."

Yami snickered again.

"Kagome. I've been expecting you."

Kagome whirled around at the sudden interruption, dagger flashing, stopping the quick movement once she noticed the lady in front of her.

Tall and strong, she wore miko garb and a sword at her side. Her face was round and her hair was dark and shiny, a widows peak on her forehead.

"Lady Midoriko."

Kagome whispered the name reverently and tried to dip into a bow, but a slender hand on her arm stopped her. She looked up into the warm eyes of the legendary priestess.

"We are equals, Kagome. There shall be no bowing."

Understanding the honor of the statement, Kagome had to restrain herself from attempting to bow again and straightened, black braid swinging behind her.

"Midoriko-san. Where am I? What happened?"

Midoriko smiled at the young girl, though her eyes seemed troubled. "You are standing in the Shikon Jewel." Kagome's eyes widened and she looked around the room again, the little fractured edge of the room suddenly holding much more significance.

"Oh, Kami."

Her voice was horrified, muffled by the slender hands she had placed over her face. She shook her head fiercely, shuddering.

"No, no, no! I thought it was complete! I know it was complete! It had to be! We got the shard from Nara-oh. Oh."

She looked up at Midoriko, face drawn and pinched.

"It was fake?"

Midoriko nodded hesitantly and watched, as Kagome seemed to break down, small frame shaking with silent, unseen tears. She had already cried herself out; only dry hiccups remained.

"But why? How?"

The questions went unanswered and a long silence stretched over the little white cavern as Kagome composed herself.

"Kagome."

The girl looked up at Midoriko, face questioning.

"You are bound to Shikon now. It has accepted you. You are its protector. Wherever, whenever, whatever it desires, wants to go, needs to go, you must go with it."

Kagome's eyes were widening now, face drawing into itself as she realized the horror of these words. "No." She whispered fervently, but Midoriko's eyes were unsympathetic, steely. "You must Kagome, you must."

Kagome's eyes were narrowing now, her mind racing.

"And if I don't want to?"

Her voice was defiant, face hard.

"You don't have a choice."

"Yes, I do. I always have a choice."

"Not in this situation Kagome. This time, the decision has been made for you. You must follow the Shikon to the ends of the Earth."

"No. I refuse to."

"You must."

"I have duties here, responsibilities. The Western Lands. Kaede."

"Kouga can handle everything."

"He can. But will he?"

"He must."

Kagome's eyes were slits, the cobalt color flashing.

"You can't do this to me." The statement was a light hiss and Midoriko barely heard the words. The older priestess smiled sadly.

"I must."

When Kagome's shoulders slumped in defeat, Midoriko continued.

"Where I am sending you, youkai are not well known and even less liked. In fact, demons of any kind are hated. There are many Hidden Villages in the new dimension and they specialize in…ninjas. I want you to wander around, become familiar with the territory. Attempt to find Naraku. Find Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves and you will find help there if things are not going according to plan."

Kagome made a face. She had no desire to cause the deaths of any more people. She made a silent vow to herself to keep everyone in that dimension out of danger to the best of her ability. Of course, that meant no friends of any kind.

Midoriko continued, oblivious to the thoughts running through the younger priestess's head.

"You will have Yami."

Youko gave an indignant squeak and Midoriko smiled gently in his direction.

"And Youko, of course. You must keep yourself hidden. It is imperative no one but the Kages know of your powers. Try to limit the information you give them as well. We do not need anyone becoming suspicious. Unfortunately, I cannot give you any help. You only have control over water and as you know, on the new moon, that power is useless, just as Inu Yasha weakens."

The miko's face scrunched in disgust as she mentioned Inu Yasha, and Kagome remembered the one thing she disliked about Midoriko – her intense hatred for youkai of any kind, no matter age, size of the amount of good will in them.

"Try to limit yourself; do not use the Element in front of anyone. If you must, claim it is a jutsu. As for the skills Sesshomaru taught you…simple tricks, nothing too extravagant. You must rely on your own abilities. Also…"

Midoriko's face became wary; as though she was not sure how Kagome would react to the next piece of information.

"I'm reverting you back to the age of eight."

Kagome glared at the older miko, but without any real malice and recited her line, already having resigned herself to the life that was approaching.

"You're what? No. I refuse to."

"You must."

Kagome shuddered. She was really starting to hate the word 'must'.

"I can't believe I have to go through puberty _again_. As though it wasn't bad enough the first time." Kagome's grumbling was her way of showing she accepted the terms, even if she was not happy with them.

Kagome looked hesitant as she held out her hand towards Midoriko, who laughed and pulled the younger girl into a hug.

"I'll see you soon, Kagome-chan."

"Same, Midoriko-san."

"Good luck."

With those last words, a flash of light encased Kagome's small frame and she vanished from sight. Midoriko sighed and sat down on the white ground. The worst was yet to come and she sincerely hoped the younger priestess would survive.

"Oh Kagome…please be careful. The world will be lost without you."

_fin_

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A/N.

**I know it's short. Sorry. But I really have to finish my 10 page essay on '**_**Great Expectations'**_**and I was dying from writer's block, so this helped me along.**

**New chapter will be out hopefully in 2 weeks.**

Hopefully I will be able to update every week.

Unfortunately, I have a habit of updating only when the plot bunnies have trashed my outline and I feel like I'm going to self-destruct unless I update right away. So, please do not get too upset with me.

Reviews make me smile ;)

**-Ilira**


	3. Leader

A/N:

Thank you to all these reviewers:

**Celeste Criss, Elfgurl96, Sapphire Moon Maiden, dokutoku, lovelyanimeangel, K.S.T.M, XxHisLilLoverGirlxX, StarsInTheDarkSky, WraithReaper, SesshomaruLover4eva, missymoo11, merlyn1382, babybisser, Kobato-hime, grimmich, cookiemaster11111111111, gender-bender-lover-101, **and** Puberty Sucks**

I hope you review again ;)

* * *

Heart of the Broken One

Chapter Three: Leader

"Oof!"

A cruel, invisible force slammed Kagome into the ground, knocking the air out of her lungs. The hard, sandy, gritty ground. The miko lay there face down, groaning and mentally making sure all of her vital organs were still intact. She imagined it would be considerably more difficult to become a ninja with her lungs missing.

A now familiar weight began moving steadily up her spinal cord, carefully touching upon the little bumps, until a large black paw violently knocked Youko off. Yami retracted his paw and licked it delicately, baring his teeth in the leopard version of a smirk.

"Thank you Yami."

"Anytime, my lady."

With another groan, Kagome forced herself to sit up and then stand.

And promptly shrieked, imitating a banshee rather closely. Yami covered his delicate ears and Youko, head still buried in the sand, squirmed uncomfortably. As the shriek died down, he yanked his head out from under the red sand, poofs of dust escaping his ears.

Yami opened an eye cautiously and stared at Kagome, who was glaring down at her almost half-sized body with resentment.

"Are you quite done?" he purred, eyes glittering with slight amusement. Kagome ignored him, muttering to herself.

"Ugh, my nose is all pointy and my fingers are too little and ugh, I'm so _short_!" she wailed dramatically, letting out a sharp breath afterwards.

Yami stared at her coolly; Youko's face a comical expression between laughter and fear.

She gave her new- or rather, old- body another hateful glare and then snapped into serious mode.

"Alrighty, then. Let's see what oh-wonderful Midoriko gave me."

For the first time, Kagome noticed her clothes. Black Capri pants, a sleeveless cobalt blue shirt that cut off at her navel and had the Western Lands insignia on the back. A fishnet shirt covered the bare part of her stomach and sleeves. A pair of sturdy black boots were on her feet. Her hair was up in a bun and were there…_needles_ in there? She pulled out the sharp objects and stared at them. Kami, they were pointy.

Shivering, she shoved them into her pocket and tied up her hair in a high ponytail. A little blue bag at her hip contained 10 shruiken and a pocket at her knee contained two sharp daggers. Sango's bracelet, holding all the shrunken weapons, hung around her wrist, thankfully still there.

Finishing the in-depth analysis of her new look, she looked around, taking in her surroundings, brow furrowing slightly.

Huge, dry rocks, loose red-gold sand, dirt, the wind stirring up little tufts of sand, forming them into mini sand dunes…where was that damned village?

"The villages are supposed to be hidden, Kagome-sama."

Kagome flushed, red rushing into her cheeks. She had forgotten how closely she and Yami were bonded.

"Right, I knew that. I was…observing."

"Of course you were." His light purr was cordial and completely understanding, but Kagome could feel him smirking, or rather, doing the leopard version of a smirk.

She scowled at him, blue eyes narrowing slightly, a look that would have made him cringe and look away before, but which looked simply silly on her eight-year-old face. Seeming to realize this, she scowled deeper at him and turned to her right, stomping off to where she felt various auras shifting and pulsing.

However, as she stomped, eyes narrowed, she failed to notice the small ditch in front of her.

"Oof." Kagome's voice was a light grumble as she promptly face-planted into the red sand. She swore suddenly, InuYasha's colorful vocabulary showing its influence. Growling carelessly, she stood up, ignoring Youko's chortling and Yami's light chuckles.

The three continued walking through the sand, drawing steadily closer to the village. Kagome shoved Youko into Shippo's black bag, the kit clawing and howling all the way and Yami melted down, seeming to take on the form of an odd shadow that had no physical form.

Eventually, slowly, but surely, large, wind-worn earthen gates flickered into view.

By this point, Kagome had forced herself into tears and upon sighting the two half-asleep guards at the gate, burst into hiccupping sobs and rushed forward, throwing herself at the larger one's legs, startling both into alertness.

"Uh…"

"She's crying."

"I noticed!"

"What should we do?"

"How should I know? I don't have no kids!"

"Well, neither do I!"

"This is bad."

"You're telling me?"

Kagome fought to hide a smile as the two guards panicked. Obviously, they did not know how to handle crying children. Wailing louder, she buried her face into the ninja's black pants.

Hesitating slightly, he bent down, wrenched her away from his pants, and stared at her tear-streaked face.

"Um…hi little girl."

Kagome sniffled.

"Uh…give me a hand here!" the larger one hissed at his companion. The shorter ninja rolled his eyes and moved forward quickly, pulling a cloth out of his pocket and handing it to Kagome, before seizing her hand and striding purposefully through the gate. The larger one gaped after him.

"Kino! What are you doing?" Kino rolled his eyes. "Taking her to Kazekage, Soonin."

"But...but….THE KAZEKAGE? This isn't important enough!" Kino swiveled around, hand still gently wrapped around Kagome's tiny one.

"You got any other suggestions, dumbass? Neither of us knows how to handle a crying girl. The Kazekage has three kids. He's best fit for this job."

Soonin shrunk under Kino's death glare but nodded meekly and followed him quietly. Kagome smirked slightly as the guard led her into a round building. Step one, complete.

Upon entering the dome-like structure, a stifling blast of heat greeted her. Kami, it was worse than outside!

The two guards led her to a large door, which they knocked upon with a series of quick raps that she concluded was code for "emergency" due to the fact that the door immediately swung open and a man whose face was panicked shouted, "EMERGENCY!".

A gravelly voice called from inside the room, "Kobato. Shut up." Immediately, the man quieted and scurried out of their way, giving them entry into the room before hurrying out.

The room was dark and musty, with a low ceiling, a slowly turning fan overhead, and a single window that allowed a ray of light to stream in and illuminate the man sitting imperiously at the large desk in the center of the room.

"Kazekage-sama!" The two guards grunted in unison, bowing their heads and parting to reveal Kagome, who looked like the poster girl for a poor orphaned child, tear-streaked face, dirt-caked clothes and all.

"Um, the girl, she uh… well, she'll explain! Goodbye!"

Just as the Kazekage opened his mouth to object, the ANBU departed with another quick bow. The older man looked back at Kagome with a slightly confused expression, waiting for answers. Kagome seated herself across from him, face suddenly clear of tears and smiled.

"So, I hear you have three kids?"

The Kazekage relaxed into his seat and nodded. Kagome grinned and leaned her elbows on the table. "Have you ever heard of the Shikon-no-Tama?"

His eyebrows shot up and he leaned forward, intrigued. Kagome smiled again. "My name is Tashio Kagome. And I am the Guardian."

-/-

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-/-

"Home sweet home,"

Yami drawled, giving the tiny apartment a once-over and wrinkling up his face. Kagome's slap to the back of his head was expected and he ducked his head slightly, allowing the hand which was supposed to make contact with his head settle on top of it gently instead.

"Now Yami, I know it's not much but it's all I could afford on such short notice." The leopard nodded his head in acknowledgement and cringed as Youko's loud voice pierced the air.

"This thing is a dump! This is ridiculous! I need my own b-ow!"

Once again, Yami's paw came out of nowhere. Youko glared at the shadow leopard playfully and growled. Yami ignored the challenge and followed Kagome inside. The priestess surveyed the insides of the bright apartment and grudgingly allowed herself to be impressed. It wasn't much, but it was neat, clean and bright. That was really all she needed, considering this was to be a temporary stay.

After arranging her possessions around the apartment, Kagome flopped down onto her bed, a hand absentmindedly stroking Yami soft fur while Youko curled up and quickly fell asleep.  
The interrogating that had gone down at the Kazekage's office had been entirely too personal.

She had answered the least revealing of the questions and departed after setting conditions with him about her stay.

They agreed that nobody could force her to stay in the Village of the Sand, only she was to deal with the demons that may attack the village –discreetly, of course- and that she would depart the instance any hint of Naraku's whereabouts surfaced. He had vowed an oath of secrecy and she left, satisfied.

It was far too soon to say she trusted him, but she knew he would not betray her. If she were to stay at this village, she would have to blend in. The Kazekage bragged about his children and how they were by far the most advanced ninjas in the village and although she wanted to test that theory, it would probably be safer to stay under the radar.

However, Midoriko had not said anything against…alliances. Moreover, she could use the company, considering the hole in her chest was threatening to swallow her completely.

But for now, she needed supplies. At the very least, she needed food. Leaping up, she hurriedly used the bathroom and exited the apartment, leaving Youko asleep and Yami's shadow form lithely following her footsteps.

-/-

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Nobody noticed Kagome as she wandered among the village, entering shop after shop, arms laden with heavy bags. Finally convinced that her current inventory would tide her over for a while, she turned to leave the hustle and bustle of the crowd.

Just as she was exiting the crowds and was approaching the forest, a voice shattered the silence.

"Hey! You there, short chick!"

Kagome turned around, surprised.

* * *

A/N:

…I'm sorry…

My laptop was at the warehouse being repaired for a while and I just found out my friend has cancer…

She's getting surgery Monday though, so pray for her please

**Anyways, I wanted to thank everyone for the support and reviews. I love reviews everybody, they make my day and seriously motivate me to write more.**

**Thanks again,**

**-Ilira**

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